The City of Helsinki’s advisory services can provide you with advice and guidance in accordance with your needs, free of charge. All of the City of Helsinki’s service departments provide information about their respective services. If you do not know which service department you need to contact, Helsinki-info can provide you with general advice. If necessary, Helsinki-info will also refer you on to the services you need.
Helsinki-info
Helsinki-info’s free-of-charge multilingual advisory services help you with matters related to the City of Helsinki’s services and immigration.
- The chat service is open Mon–Thu 9.00–16.00 and Fri 10.00–15.00.
- The telephone service is open Mon–Thu 9.00–16.00 and Fri 10.00–15.00, tel. +358 9 31011 111.
Contact information for the Helsinki-info service points:
Helsinki Central Library Oodi
Töölönlahdenkatu 4
Mon–Thu 10.00–18.00 and Fri 10.00–16.00
International House Helsinki
Lintulahdenkuja 2 D, 2nd floor
Mon–Thu 9.00–16.00 and Fri 10.00–16.00
Stoa Itäkeskus Library
Turunlinnantie 1
Mon, Wed 9.00–16.00, Fri 10.00–16.00
In Helsinki, every city district is safe and is served regularly by public transport. Most of the residents live in rental housing. The City of Helsinki leases out state-subsidised apartments that have more affordable rent than apartments in the private rental market. You can apply for a city-owned rental apartment by filling out an application form. The City provides applicants with housing based on the application criteria, level of urgency and housing need.
Information on applying for an apartment and moving for Ukrainians
How to apply for City of Helsinki housing (HEKA)(Link leads to external service)
Rental apartments in the Helsinki region
The InfoFinland website contains information on where you can find housing and what it costs to live in Helsinki.
Housing in Helsinki (InfoFinland)(Link leads to external service)
Housing in Finland (InfoFinland) (Link leads to external service)
The right to a municipality of residence obliges children under 7 years of age to participate in pre-primary education, and children and young people between 7–15 years of age to participate in basic education.
Compulsory education ends when the child turns 18 or completes a degree or qualification in general upper secondary school or in a vocational institution or a corresponding foreign degree or qualification. The website of the Finnish National Agency for Education contains information on the effects of the municipality of residence on early childhood education and education:
For Ukrainian refugees (Finnish National Agency for Education)(Link leads to external service)
The Finnish education system (InfoFinland)(Link leads to external service)
The Childhood and education website of Helsinki contains information on the early childhood education, pre-primary education and basic education services provided by the City of Helsinki. For over 15-year-olds, the city provides the services of the general upper secondary schools, vocational institutions and adult education centres.
Childhood and education services in Helsinki
Information about starting basic education for families moving to Finland from abroad
When you have a residence permit on the basis of temporary protection and your municipality of residence is Helsinki, you are entitled to the same health and social services as other Helsinki residents. The Health and social services website of Helsinki offers you information about the city’s health stations, maternity and child health clinics, dental clinics, mental health services and substance abuse services.
Health and social services in Helsinki
Health services
Your local health station is your main source for services during opening hours. When the health stations are closed, you can get help in urgent matters by calling the Medical Helpline at 116 117.
The emergency number in Finland is 112.
Health in Helsinki (InfoFinland)(Link leads to external service)
Contact information of the health stations in Helsinki
Special services for immigrants
In Helsinki, you will be provided with social services primarily by the 'Special services for immigrants’ team, who will also support you with integration.You are entitled to social services promoting integration or an initial assessment and integration plan. You can also receive guidance and advice on matters related to settling in Helsinki and organising your everyday life.
Do you need support for housing, finances or wellbeing, or psychosocial support for coping in everyday life? Social services promoting integration are based on your needs and support you in the early stages of integration.
If your support needs are less urgent or if, for example, you are caring for your child under the age of three, are a student or work and have resided in Finland for less than three years, we can provide you with an initial assessment. The purpose of the assessment is to help you find the services you need to support your integration.
Contact information:
Kalasatama Health and Well-being Centre
Special Services for Immigrants
Työpajankatu 14A, 1st floor
Tel. +358 9 310 37577 (recent arrivals and victims of human trafficking)
Tel. +358 9 310 23747 (special group social work/undocumented migrants)
Special Services for Immigrants website
Social and crisis emergency services
Emergency Social Services helps in social welfare crisis situations every day around the clock, tel. +358 206 96006
Emergency Social Services website
Crisis Emergency Services provides acute crisis assistance in sudden crisis situations around the clock, tel. +358 9 3104 4222.
If you have a residence permit on the basis of temporary protection, you are unemployed and your registered address is in Helsinki, you can become a client of Helsinki Employment Services, and use our services at no cost. We can help you find a job, apply for study and training programmes, and sign up for Finnish and Swedish classes. If necessary, we can book an interpreter to help explain things in your own language.
Helsinki Employment Services(Link leads to external service)
Working in Finland (Ministry of Economic Affairs and Employment)(Link leads to external service)
Work and Enterprise in Helsinki (InfoFinland)(Link leads to external service)
We help you to:
- find a job
- update your CV and job application
- consider different education and training options
- apply for Finnish recognition of qualifications earned abroad
- draw up an integration or employment plan
- enroll in Finnish or Swedish language classes, if desired
- benefit from a wide range of advisory and coaching services
- stay informed about various recruitment events, and
- integrate into Finland.
How can I register as a client?
- To become a client, you must first visit an Employment and Economic Development Office (TE office):
- Antinkatu 1, second floor in the Kamppi district
- Ratapihantie 7 in the Pasila district
- The advisory service is open Mon–Fri 9.00–16.00. It is not necessary to make an appointment.
- After registration, an employment services specialist will contact you to arrange an appointment. At the appointment, you will review your situation and goals, and map out the services you may need together with the specialist. You will also jointly prepare a personal employment or integration plan.
- Over the next few weeks, Helsinki Employment Services will be in touch with you via meetings, phone calls and email. If you wish, you can meet with your appointed specialist in person. During this time, you can use any of our advisory services without an appointment.
As a Helsinki Employment Services client, you will be required to:
- Carry out your personal employment or integration plan as agreed
- Actively seek employment or apply for a study or training programme
- Inform your specialist of any changes to your contact details.
Employment plan
If your goal is to find a job, we will help you draw up a personal employment plan. The plan describes your job seeking situation and will help you secure employment. You will create the plan together with your appointed specialist. Examples of questions addressed in the plan may include:
- What kind of work you are looking for?
- How many jobs must you apply for per month? The number will be specified in your job search obligation.
- What kind of skills do you have? This includes for example work experience, studies, training and qualifications.
- Which services do you need to support your employment?
We will help you carry out the plan. The plan is valid for three months at a time.
Integration plan
If you would like to settle down and live in Finland for a longer period of time, we can jointly draw up an integration plan with you. The plan specifies the services you will need for integration and finding employment. These may include:
- Finnish or Swedish language classes
- integration training
- vocational education, and/or
- job search coaching.
Integration training generally lasts about a year but may last up to three years maximum. It is intended for migrants who have moved to Finland recently. In the integration training, you will study the Finnish language and attend classes on Finnish society and working life.
Relevant news
Filter the city’s news in English for Ukraine-associated stories by choosing the topic of Ukraine in the city website’s news item search field.